FDA asks Xanodyne to pull painkillers from market

SILVER SPRING, Md. A drug maker will pull a common prescription painkiller from the market following the release of clinical data that it could cause heart problems.

The Food and Drug Administration announced that it had requested the withdrawal of branded and generic versions of propoxyphene from the U.S. market due to the risk among patients of serious or fatal heart rhythm abnormalities. Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals markets the drug under the brand names Darvon and Darvocet –– a combination of propoxyphene and acetaminophen –– and several generic drug makers have their own versions. All the manufacturers will be removing the drug from the market, the FDA said.

“[The FDA] is pleased by Xanodyne’s decision to voluntarily remove its products from the U.S. market,” FDA Office of New Drugs director John Jenkins said. “These new heart data significantly alter propoxyphene’s risk-benefit profile. The drug’s effectiveness in reducing pain is no longer enough to outweigh the drug’s serious potential heart risks.”

The drug is used to treat mild to moderate pain and has been on the market since the late 1950s.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. The customer care team of CVS Caremark’s pharmacy benefit management business earned a silver medal for its customer service by Contact Center World, CVS announced Friday.

CVS’ PBM was ranked second in the world for best customer service with an internal contact center. The award was issued at Contact Center World’s Global Top Ranking Performers Awards conference in Las Vegas, which recognizes the best in the contact center industry worldwide. The conference, attended by delegates and presenters from 30 nations, regional winners from the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and the Asia-Pacific regions presented and shared their best practices with their peers and were voted upon by the conference delegates.

Rosemarie Donzanti, SVP customer care for CVS Caremark, called the award "a great honor. This recognition is a validation of the high level of commitment our team members bring to their day-to-day work and underscores our focus on ensuring our members’ experience with CVS Caremark is the best it can be," she said.

Earlier this year, CVS Caremark was named best in customer service in the Americas group at the Top Ranking Performers Awards conference in Orlando, Fla.

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